"ملخص لعلاقات الحكومة البريطانية مع قبائل وشيوخ عربستان. بقلم الملازم أ. ت. ويلسون، القائم بأعمال القنصل في عربستان" [ظ‎‎١‎٠] (١٤٣/٢٥)

6
They add that the growing strength of the Ka’ab, Muntafik and Bani
Lam Arabs constitute a growing menace to the peace of Basrah.
In November 1771 the Basrah factors wrote
“ Demands made in this country, unless supported by a respectable force, onh sti\e
to render the party who makes them contemptible.
The present Chaub is as avaricious as the former.”
He had lately blinded the eyes of “ Busboos,” the only surviving son of
Shaikh Salman.' “ Karim Khan in this year appears as commencing piracy on
his own account.
From this time onward the records to which the writer has had access
have very little bearing upon the doings of the Ka’ab and their relations with
the British and Persian Governments. In December 1773, when the Ka’ab
were ordered by Karim Khan to send their ships to his assistance the Chief
of that tribe retorted by scuttling his boats and showing them in that condi
tion to Karim Khan’s envoy. During this year (1773) plague in Basrah
had been very severe and the total loss in Turkish Arabia was reckoned at
2 millions. It had disappeared by January 1774.
In this month the Ka’ab were ordered by Karim Khan to assist him in
his designs against the Turks : this they refused to do, and promised the
Turks that they would remain neutral. Shortly after this promise an attack
on the Turkish fleet by that of the Ka’ab, then lying at the Haffar, was only
prevented by the presence of English ships erf war.
In February 1775, the Ka’ab sacked ’Basrah in revenge for the execution
of an Arab by the Turkish authorities in Basrah.
In April 1776, Basrah was surrendered to the Persians, and in the
following month the Basrah Council write that :—
Had we not been acquainted with the Persian character, we would have formed a
most pleasing opinion of our future prospects under Persian rule.
Early in 1779, the Persians retired from Basrah, which was re-occupied
by the Turks (Karim Khan died in this year).
In May 1798, Mr. Manesty, British Resident at Basrah, reported to the
Governor-General of India that he was on intimate terms with desert and
other Arab Shaikhs and that British influence was firmly established in his
district.
At this point the Bombay Selections terminate; henceforward until
1890, when a British Vice-Consulate was established at Mohammerah the
only records available in regard to the affairs of the Ka’ab and of ’Arabistan
generally are those of the Bushire Residency. Those of the Basrah Consulate
are very meagre and throw^ little light on ’Arabistan affairs, though these
'! er ® d 1 ^! t . b J He . r Majesty s representative there, under the orders of
the Political Resident m the Persian Gulf, until 1890. 1
1 For a complete list of the Shaikhs of the Ka ab, see annex to this chapte~